AEC head: Consumer groups’ radiation readings worth considering

Head of the Atomic Energy Council (AEC) Hsieh Shou-shing says the findings of a Taiwanese consumers' group are worth considering as the government reevaluates a ban on some Japanese food products.

Taiwan banned imports of food from five Japanese prefectures after the Fukushima nuclear meltdown in 2011. However, the government has proposed easing restrictions. One group, the Green Consumers' Foundation, has conducted independent radiation measurements in areas subject to the ban.

The group says it detected man-made Caesium-137 at all three sites where it tested for radiation. On Thursday, during a review of the AEC's 2017 budget, lawmakers asked Hsieh Shou-shing about the test results.

Hsieh was asked to comment on Health Minister Lin Tzou-yien's remarks that the test results were inconclusive and that the group's detection equipment was not as sophisticated as equipment used by the government. Hsieh said that while group's equipment is relatively simple, the group's findings may still be valid.